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Physical Review A

Laser-modified electron correlations and deflection of atoms by laser light

O. Zobay, G. Alber

Published Nov 1, 1997• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The influence of laser-induced two-electron excitation processes on the deflection of atoms by a standing-wave laser field is investigated. In particular, isolated-core excitation processes are studied in which, after preparing one valence electron as an electronic Rydberg wave packet, the core electron is driven resonantly by the standing wave. The dynamics of the two electrons are entangled through laser-induced electron correlation effects. A theoretical approach is developed that clearly exhibits the intricate interplay between these correlation effects and the atomic center-of-mass motion that originates from the stimulated light force. Various examples are analyzed that show the manifestations of this interplay in the diffraction pattern of a deflected atom.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.56.3897

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The influence of laser-induced two-electron excitation processes on the deflection of atoms by a standing-wave laser field is investigated. In particular, isolated-core excitation processes are studied in which, after preparing one valence electron as an electronic Rydberg wave packet, the core electron is driven resonantly by the standing wave. The dynamics of the two electrons are entangled through laser-induced electron correlation effects. A theoretical approach is developed that clearly exhibits the intricate interplay between these correlation effects and the atomic center-of-mass motion that originates from the stimulated light force. Various examples are analyzed that show the manifestations of this interplay in the diffraction pattern of a deflected atom.
The momentum exchange between a standing wave laser field and an atomic center-of-mass is dominated by the internal dynamics of an atomic electron in the exciting laser field. Rydberg atoms are one of the simplest physical systems where the dependence of this radiative force on the electronic dynamics can be investigated in detail. The characteristics of the momentum transfer between an atomic center-of-mass and a standing wave laser field strongly depend on whether the “particle” or the “wave” aspect of the electronic dynamics prevail. In this review recent theoretical advances in the description of the mechanical action of laser light on Rydberg atoms are discussed. These advances have become possible by the application of semiclassical path integral techniques with respect to the electronic dynamics which clearly exhibit the “particle” and “wave” aspects of this momentum transfer.
In quantum optical problems involving the interaction of atoms with laser fields, the atoms are usually considered being stationary during the interaction. Since every photon has a momentum, the atomic momentum (motion) can be changed in the process of absorption and emission of photons. This may force a stationary atom to move or to change momentum of an already moving atom. Therefore, the dynamical behaviour of atoms can be varied by the interaction with a radiation field. For a weak driving field, the influence of this field on the atomic motion can be neglected. However, the intensities of laser fields are generally very strong, and then the motion of the atoms can be considerably changed by the laser field. Here, we discuss this aspect, especially the effect of a driving field on the motion of atoms and the atomic momentum distribution. In particular, we will consider diffraction of atoms by a standing-wave laser field due to an exchange of momentum with the photons of the wave, and radiation force on atoms driven by a running-or standing-wave laser field.
The formation of atom-optical gratings induced by multiphoton excitation of Rydberg states is discussed for fast atoms. With the help of semiclassical path-integral methods the correlation between the dynamics of a laser-excited Rydberg electron and the momentum transferred to the atomic center of mass in a spatially modulated laser field is exhibited quantitatively. These types of laser excitation processes might offer new perspectives for the realization of atomic multiple beam splitters and for atom-lithographic applications.
We study theoretically the diffraction of atoms by a standing-wave light field. Conceptually the text is divided into two parts. In the first part we deal with the coherent interaction only. We use a band theoretical approach to describe the laser-atom interaction, and to characterize two-beam resonances (Dopplerons and Bragg resonances). These two-beam resonances are major candidates to develop effective atom beam splitters. We study the interaction with classical light fields as well as with quantum fields. In the second part we take incoherent processes, i.e. spontaneous emission, into account and present a numerical scheme for the solution of the generalized optical Bloch equations. This scheme is based on the split-operator technique, and we use it to study numerically the influence of spontaneous emission on the diffraction process. We compare our results with recent experimental data, and investigate the impact of spontaneous emission on the performance of two-beam resonances.
We have observed momentum transfer from a standing-wave light field to an atomic beam. The atomic beam is split symmetrically into two peaks whose separation increases with field strength. The short interaction time ensures that this deflection is due to induced forces; these are described using a semiclassical dressed-atom treatment, which gives good agreement with the data. In addition to the splitting, we have observed diffraction of the atomic beam due to the exchange of even numbers of photons with the field.
Deflection of an atomic beam passing through two crossed standing light waves is proposed for studies of transition through the Raman resonance in Λ -atomic systems. Considering different regimes of excitation of Λ -atoms by offresonant standing waves, we demonstrate that the deflection patterns, in the plane perpendicular to the direction of the center of atomic mass motion, are essentially different for the cases of one-photon and two-photon excitations. Visualization of the quantum superposition states of low atomic levels on the two-dimensional spatial patterns of atomic deflection is performed.